Pregnancy crisis centers must say what they are

By Sara Hutchinson Ratcliffe

August 19, 2015Updated: August 19, 2015 5:01pm

California is poised to expose the sleight-of-hand that so-called crisis pregnancy centers use to target low-income women seeking abortions. The Reproductive Freedom, Accountability, Comprehensive Care and Transparency Act (AB775), a bill that passed the Assembly and soon will come up before the state Senate, will empower women across the state to make their own informed health-care decisions.

As a Catholic, I support bills like the Fact Act. Catholics recognize each woman’s God-given right to make the best health decisions for herself, her family and her circumstances, based on her conscience. As Catholics, we have an obligation to stand up for the conscience rights of all individuals when it comes to personal, private decisions such as abortion. Catholics are called by our faith to show solidarity with and compassion for the poor. Our tradition leads us to fight for the most vulnerable members of our society and for the human dignity of all.

California has numerous laws that support women and provide assistance for low-income residents, but many women remain unaware of the comprehensive services the state offers. Throughout the state, facilities not licensed to provide medical care pose as comprehensive reproductive health centers when they are in fact anti-choice organizations. These centers use misleading advertising to appeal to women facing a possible pregnancy in hopes of blocking them from considering abortion as a health-care option. In fact, crisis pregnancy centers routinely lie to women about the reproductive health services they offer — delaying or denying women access to the health care they need, and as their consciences have guided them.

At Catholics for Choice, we represent the majority of California’s 12 million Catholics who support access to comprehensive reproductive health care services and believe in religious liberty. Joining the faithful voices across the state, we co-signed a letter to the state Senate and Gov. Jerry Brown from more than 100 faith groups and leaders, asking representatives to do the right thing and protect the rights of men and women in California.

The Reproductive Fact Act would ensure that facilities disclose their unlicensed status so women can make fully informed decisions about their health. Women, particularly the most vulnerable, who seek abortion care at licensed facilities would receive the information they need to access affordable health care and make the best decisions for themselves and their families.

Opponents of the bill, including the California Catholic Conference, falsely argue that the Reproductive Fact Act violates their religious freedom. It does not. It respects the definition of religious freedom — freedom of and freedom from — by allowing women of every faith, and women of no faith, in California to access affordable health care. It is critical for Catholics to speak up for the women who need abortions and with the providers who honestly and conscientiously care for them.

The social justice tradition of our Catholic faith calls us to do so, and it is something every Californian and Catholic should support. We ask that the state Senate follow the lead of the Assembly and pass AB775. We hope Gov. Brown will sign the bill into law. It is the right thing to do, and women in California should expect nothing less.

Sara Hutchinson Ratcliffe is the domestic program director for Catholics for Choice in Washington, D.C.